Chelsea Burroughs led Lipscomb with 21 points and Valerie Bronson added 20 more as the Lady Bisons defeated Harding University 90-77 Saturday afternoon in an exhibition at Allen Arena.

The game was delayed approximately 30 minutes and then played on a dim court with only one scoreboard after a squirrel knocked out power at a local substation. The limited lighting was provided by the Arena's emergency power generator.

Once the game got underway Lipscomb had little trouble setting into a groove. Bronson scored six of Lipscomb’s first 11 points as the Lady Bisons held an 11-3 lead going into the first media break.

Bronson started a 17-2 run for Lipscomb when she connected on a 3-pointer at the 10:19 mark. Brittany Duerk scored seven straight points to put the Lady Bisons up 35-15 with 6:20 remaining in the first half.

Lipscomb expanded its lead to 47-22 with 2:46 left in the half on two free throws by Kaitie Fritts. Harding went on a 9-0 run to close the gap to 16 points at the break.

Harding was not ready to give up and continued its run to start the second half. Harding’s Elizabeth Nagel connected on a 3-pointer with 16:37 left to make it a 54-44 game. A three by Harding’s Stacey Owens put Harding down only five points, 63-58, with 13:42 remaining.

“I think when we got a big lead in the first half we let down on the defensive end a little bit,” said Lipscomb head coach Frank Bennett. “Our defensive intensity in the second half was not what it needed to be. They scored 46 points and had their way a lot of possessions.”

A 3-pointer by Burroughs with 12:05 left helped to ice Harding's run and start to swing the momentum back in Lipscomb’s favor.

“I like the fact that we met the challenges,” said Bennett. “They made some runs at us and got the game down to five points and we made stops and made big baskets when we had to have them to stop the runs.”

Burroughs led the Lady Bisons from beyond the arc. She was 7-of-12 from the 3-point line scoring all of her points from downtown. As a team the Lady Bisons were 12-of-19 from the 3-point line for 41.4 percent.

“Chelsea has been practicing great and has had a great fall,” said Bennett. “She is really good at running the lanes so we can get the ball ahead to her. If you don’t get out on her she nails that three. And having to guard her opens other opportunities up.”

Bronson scored her 20 points shooting 8-of-13 from the field and hitting two-of-four 3-pointers. She also grabbed five rebounds.

“Val didn’t finish last season very strong but she has also had a great fall,” said Bennett. “She has been going to the basket strong and is a big driving threat.”

Jenna Bartsokas played well at the guard position. She had eight assists to only one turnover. She also had four rebounds and a steal. Bartsokas was 9-of-10 from the free throw line and finished with 11 points.

“Jenna is just solid at the guard position on both ends of the floor,” said Bennett. “I think she is playing very well. She ran the team well.”

Duerk had a team-high nine rebounds. She posted 12 points and had two assists and two steals.

Lipscomb finished the game 26-of-60 from the field for 43.3 percent. Harding was 25-of-57 for 43.9 percent.

Lipscomb was 26-of-37 from the free throw line for 70.3 percent and Harding was 20-of-26 for 76.9 percent.

Harding’s Danielle Reiher had a team-high 14 points. Bailey St. Clair and Owens each added 10 points for Harding.

Harding held a 39-37 advantage on the boards. Lipscomb outrebounded Harding 17-13 on the offensive end, but Harding posted 17 second chance points to Lipscomb’s nine.

The Lady Bisons play their final exhibition Tuesday night against Freed-Hardeman. Game time is 7 p.m. in Allen Arena. Tickets are $7 and are available at the door.